Backer to run again after 14-year hiatus

Gracia Backer will run for another term, 14 years after leaving office.

Tue, 15 Apr 2014 02:56:48 GMT —

A former mid-Missouri lawmaker will run for another term, 14 years after leaving office.

Gracia Yancey Backer of New Bloomfield represented Callaway County in the Missouri House from 1983 through 2000. In 1996, Backer was elected the state's first female Majority Floor Leader.

Monday the Democratic 49th District Legislative Committee voted unanimously to nominate Backer to serve as the party's candidate this November. Backer will step up after Larry Brown withdrew from the race April 8. Under Missouri's term limits, due to her prior House service, Backer is eligible to serve a single two-year term.

"I am honored by this nomination and the opportunity to ask voters of Callaway and Cole counties to allow me to serve them once again during these critical decision making times that will have long-term impact for our state and our neighbors," Backer said. "We must focus like a laser on jobs, education and our infrastructure, such as the badly needed modernization of the Fulton State Hospital. State workers, who are a vital part of our local economy and communities, know that I will continue to be a tireless advocate for their interests and needs. At the same time, I pledge renewed commitment to constituent service, which was always my focus during my prior legislative service."

Backer filed a discrimination complaint with the Missouri Commission on Human Rights in October 2013 alleging discrimination in her firing by Gov. Jay Nixon's administration.